{"id":30990,"date":"2026-10-01T07:03:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T07:03:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=30990"},"modified":"2026-10-01T07:03:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T07:03:15","slug":"captain-machchhar-a-dentist-plumber-the-crew-who-helped-save-over-170-lives-on-flydubai-flight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=30990","title":{"rendered":"Captain Machchhar, a dentist, plumber &#038; the crew who helped save over 170 lives on flydubai flight"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-134610584,imgsize-129178,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/file-photo.jpg\" alt=\"Captain Machchhar, a dentist, plumber &amp; the crew who helped save over 170 lives on flydubai flight\" title=\"Inside flydubai flight FZ1073: How Captain Machchhar\u2019s quick thinking helped save 174 lives\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Inside flydubai flight FZ1073: How Captain Machchhar\u2019s quick thinking helped save 174 lives\">Inside flydubai flight FZ1073: How Captain Machchhar\u2019s quick thinking helped save 174 lives<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>When Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed inside the cockpit of a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, he was left bleeding on the floor as the plane plunged thousands of feet.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"1\"\/>But even while seriously injured, the Mumbai-born pilot managed to open the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to rush in, overpower the attacker and regain control of the aircraft.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"4\"\/>What followed was a desperate chain of interventions by people on board, including passengers, a dentist and off-duty pilots, that helped save over 170 people aboard Flight 1073.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"6\"\/>Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Machchhar a \u201chero\u201d, while Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised his actions in helping passengers and crew overpower the attacker.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"8\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2><b>Captain Smit Machchhar<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"10\"\/>Machchhar, an Indian citizen from Mumbai, was stabbed by his fellow pilot, an Omani national, during the flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"14\"\/>The attack sent the Boeing 737 MAX into a steep descent, with the aircraft dropping nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"16\"\/>Despite his injuries, Machchhar managed to release the cockpit door, allowing people outside to enter.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>Netanyahu said Machchhar \u201cfought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door\u201d and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"20\"\/>Machchhar was taken to hospital after the plane landed safely in Tabuk, north-western Saudi Arabia. Indian officials said he was in stable condition and were in contact with his family.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"24\"\/>He had trained at New Zealand\u2019s Mainland Air for 18 months in 2008 and 2009. The airline\u2019s chief executive Philip Kean described him as an above-average pilot and said training for emergencies was one thing, but successfully handling such a situation in reality was \u201ca whole different story\u201d.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"26\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2><b>Yaniv Hayoun<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"28\"\/>Among the passengers who entered the cockpit was Yaniv Hayoun, whom Netanyahu described as a plumber.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"31\"\/>Hayoun said Machchhar was lying injured on the other side of the cockpit door when passengers entered and confronted the attacker.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"33\"\/>As people wrestled with the pilot, Hayoun said he moved towards the controls and began pulling them back, using what he had seen on television as his reference.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"35\"\/>Other crew members then took over and helped stabilise the aircraft.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"37\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2><b>Dr Shota Musaev<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"39\"\/>Dr Shota Musaev, a dentist travelling on the flight, was another passenger who rushed towards the cockpit.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/>He told CNN that he found the attacker on top of Machchhar, stabbing him.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"44\"\/>Musaev said the captain was covered in cuts, particularly on his head and hands, and had lost a large amount of blood.He feared Machchhar would die before help arrived.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"46\"\/>Musaev also helped restrain the attacker, using headphone cords and plastic zip ties to tie him up.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"48\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2><b>The off-duty pilots<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"50\"\/>Passengers also reported that two relief pilots were travelling on the aircraft and entered the cockpit during the emergency.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"53\"\/>One passenger, Almog Itali, said the relief pilots included a British pilot and helped pull the aircraft up, stabilise it and guide it towards Saudi Arabia.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"55\"\/>Other reports differed on their nationalities, with some identifying them as South African or New Zealand pilots.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"58\"\/>Their exact role has not been independently established in the accounts available, but passengers said they were among those who helped regain control of the aircraft.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"61\"\/>The rescue was not the work of one person.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"63\"\/>Passengers and crew members entered the cockpit after Machchhar opened the door and helped overpower the attacker.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"65\"\/>Their intervention came as the plane was struggling to recover from its steep descent.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"67\"\/>One passenger described the plunge as feeling like \u201cmassive turbulence\u201d lasting 20 to 30 seconds.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"69\"\/>The aircraft eventually landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"71\"\/>Aviation experts said the forces involved were severe. Former United Airlines pilot and aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo said he was surprised the aircraft did not break apart, while another expert said the remaining altitude may have been crucial to the recovery.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"73\"\/>Flight 1073 ended in a safe landing and the people on board made it possible.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/world\/middle-east\/captain-machchhar-a-dentist-plumber-the-crew-who-helped-save-over-170-lives-on-flydubai-flight\/articleshow\/134610396.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Inside flydubai flight FZ1073: How Captain Machchhar\u2019s quick thinking helped save 174 lives When Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed inside the cockpit of a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, he was left bleeding on the floor as the plane plunged thousands of feet.But even while seriously injured, the Mumbai-born pilot managed to open the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30991,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1790838197_file-photo.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Inside flydubai flight FZ1073: How Captain Machchhar\u2019s quick thinking helped save 174 lives When Captain Smit Machchhar was stabbed inside the cockpit of a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, he was left bleeding on the floor as the plane plunged thousands of feet.But even while seriously injured, the Mumbai-born pilot managed to open the [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 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